Free Republic

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- In the first 100 hours of the 110th Congress, the House passed a minimum wage bill that raises the federal minimum from $5.15 to $7.25 an hour and the Senate may follow suit this week, to the dismay of some small business owners. As a result of the new law, experts say that many small firms could be forced to raise prices, cut jobs or slash the hours of the low-wage workers. Video More video The House signs off on boosting the minimum wage by $2.10 over two years. CNN's Andrea Koppel reports (January 11) Play...

National Small Business Trends Small businesses decreased employee headcount by 0.2% in 2006. That's significantly less than the 4.4% growth we experienced in 2004 and a modest drop from the 0.3% increase we witnessed in 2005. The national SurePayroll Hiring Index, which measures the number of employees within small businesses, ended December at 10,442, up 15 points from November. We closed 2005 at 10,466. December marked only the fourth month in 2006 in which we saw increased hiring. We'll have to wait until 2007 to see if small business hiring continues to rise, stays flat or shoots down. Small business...

So, it appears as though "house centipedes" have decided to reside in our house. I have two questions. 1) What is the best way to get rid of the little terrorists? 2) How do I prevent my wife from freaking out every time she sees one? Thank you for your assistance.

Woman Won't Come Out Of House, Even When Family Arrives POSTED: 12:57 pm CDT May 10, 2005 UPDATED: 5:17 pm CDT May 10, 2005 OMAHA, Neb. -- A Minden, Iowa, woman who disappeared Saturday apparently lied about her pregnancy because she was unhappy, according to a news release from the Pottawattamie County Sheriff's Office. Stephanie Ehlers was believed to be pregnant when she disappeared Saturday. She was found in Omaha Tuesday, and reports say she is doing fine, though she is not pregnant as her husband had thought. Ehlers was last seen by her husband, Jason, on Saturday. Jason Ehlers...

GRISWOLD, Iowa -- Police say there is new evidence that sexual abuse happened in a home that was torched last week and killed two children. Tracey Dyess, a 17-year-old girl, was charged Friday with two counts of first-degree murder in connection with a fire at her family's home that killed her two siblings. The fire destroyed the Dyess home near Griswold. Kaleb Dyess, 6, and his sister Jessica Dyess, 13, died in the blaze. Brian Street, 39, and Debbie Dyess, 37 and Tracey Dyess escaped the fire. Brian Street, who was injured in the fire, was charged with 10 counts...

A Priest, a Rabbi, and a horse walk into a bar. The bartender says, "What is this? Some kind of a joke?" Happry April Fool's Day.

KCCI News in Des Moines is reporting that the brother of Roger Bentley, the alleged abductor of 10-year old Jetseta Gage, is serving prison time for molesting Gage. For more on this case: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1370894/posts(News conference information) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1370810/posts(Story on abduction and discovery of body)

During a news conference at 5:10 PM CT, Johnson County, Iowa Sheriff, Lonny Pulkrabek, confirmed that a body, possibly that of a 10-year old girl, was discovered in a trailer in rural Johnson County. However, identification is pending an autopsy.

Police have canceled an Amber Alert after finding a body in rural Johnson County. A positive identification of the body has not been made. The Alert had been issued after ten-year-old Jetseta Gage disappeared from her Cedar Rapids home on Thursday night. Police located 37-year-old Roger Paul Bentley in Johnson County this morning. He is in custody but has not been charged. Jetsetta's mother Trena Gage says the Bently was a family friend who worked on her car occassionally. He was at the home from about noon until eight and Gage says her son saw the 10-year-old get into Bentley's...

Man Pleads Guilty To Assault, Attempted Burglary DES MOINES, Iowa -- A Carroll County man has filed a lawsuit against The Des Moines Register, claiming he was assaulted by the man delivering the paper. The lawsuit stems from a newspaper delivery last year. Peterson called The Des Moines Register March 16, 2004, complaining that he did not receive his morning newspaper. Leslie Duff delivered the paper to Peterson's home and assaulted him, according to the lawsuit. Guy Cook, Peterson's lawyer, said Leslie Duff was "out of control." Peterson suffered a broken leg and internal injuries, according to Peterson's lawyer. He...

On the CBS TV SHow "Without a Trace," an heiress, not unlike Paris Hilton, is kidnapped. Her captor streams video of her in captivity on the internet and runs a simultaneous poll. Respondents are deciding whether the woman lives or dies. At one point, the vote swings to 53% in favor of death after being at 51% in favor of keeping her alive. One of the FBI agents questions, "How can it be at 53%?" (Or something to that effect) One of the agents coworkers response? "I don't know, how could the exit polls in Ohio be off by 8-points?"

Special release from the U.S. Department of Defense WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The Navy will commission its newest nuclear-powered attack submarine Jimmy Carter on Saturday, Feb. 19, during an 11 a.m. EST ceremony at Naval Submarine Base New London, Groton, Conn. The attack submarine Jimmy Carter honors the 39th president of the United States. President Carter is the only U.S. president to have qualified in submarines. He has distinguished himself by a lifetime of public service, and has long ties to the Navy and the submarine force. Carter graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1946, served as a commissioned officer...

Actor Ron Silver lit into freshman Rep. Melissa Bean (D-Ill.) at the party following the Washington Press Club Foundation's annual Congressional dinner Wednesday night. Silver launched into a lengthy, disjointed lecture about everything that's wrong with the Democratic Party * its policies, its politicians. Bean could barely get a word in edgewise, as Silver kept interrupting and wagging his finger at her, ROLL CALL reports. Speaking dramatically, Silver told his life story. His family came through Ellis Island. He's the son of blue-collar, working class Democrats, first person in his family to go to college, yadda yadda yadda. At one...

1 Dead After Bowling Alley Shooting GLENWOOD, Iowa -- A man opened fired at a Glenwood bowling alley Sunday night, killing a man. Police respond to a Glenwood, Iowa, bowling alley after a man opened fire. A man with a rifle walked into Midwest Lanes just after 6 p.m. The man, in his mid-40s, started shooting at another man who was bowling. At least four shots were fired. One of them hit the Pacific Junction man in the chest. Two people in the bowling alley jumped the shooter and held him down until police arrived. There were more than two...

English Teacher Charged with Public Indecency POSTED: 11:52 am CST February 11, 2005 UPDATED: 1:01 pm CST February 11, 2005 CHICAGO -- A Morgan Park High School teacher has been charged with public indecency after allegedly being caught in a compromising position with a 17-year-old member of the football team. Police reportedly caught the pair on West Englewood Avenue earlier this week in a car that was reported as suspicious. When police arrived, they allegedly found the teacher and student half-naked, NBC5's Lisa Tutman reported. English Teacher Suspended Tutman reported that the female teacher, 27-year-old Mariama Buchanan, has been suspended...

Two elections. Two weeks and eight time zones apart. The elections in Iraq on January 30. The election of Howard Dean in Washington, DC this weekend to be the chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Dear Mr. Mullings: Don't you think you should have issued a STRETCH ALERT, trying to tie the DNC election to the elections in Eye-rack? Signed, The Association of International Election Observers Well, now that you mention it… Anyway … The Iraqi democratization keeps going along quite well. Official results released yesterday indicate that just under 60 percent of registered voters turned out, which is pretty...

1)The penny greatly facilitates commerce. The U.S. Mint produces between 10 billion to 13 billion pennies annually to meet broad public demand.2) Most Americans still "count their pennies." A recent poll by Opinion Research Corporation found that more than 70% of Americans support keeping the penny in circulation. Not surprisingly, that same poll showed that those with the least annual income found the penny most valuable. When the economy slows, Americans count their pennies and cash them in. There is a flow of coinage from American homes into the economy confirmed by statistics showing a correlation between U.S. Mint demand...

Do you approve of President George W. Bush's job performance? Choice Votes Percentage of 1118 Votes Yes 377 34% No 741 66%

Kendra Benham Missing Since Friday POSTED: 5:42 pm CST February 9, 2005 UPDATED: 9:14 am CST February 10, 2005 BEATRICE, Neb. -- A national alert is out for a missing Beatrice woman. Kendra Benham, 18, was been missing since Friday night. The Southeast Community College student's family said they have no idea where she may be. The FBI is now helping local law enforcement in the search that spans Gage County. They searched in and around parts of Beatrice on Wednesday. The Nebraska State Patrol helicopter searched for five hours from the air, covering hundreds of miles. Her family is...

Former Hawkeyes Basketball Player Charged POSTED: 10:10 am CST February 9, 2005 UPDATED: 11:27 am CST February 9, 2005 WEST DES MOINES, Iowa -- A former Hawkeyes star basketball player turned himself in to West Des Moines police Wednesday morning. The Latest Statement From Woman's Attorney Pierce's Latest Statement Alford Says Pierce Betrayed Team's Trust Pierce Meets With Investigators Video: Parrish Speaks Talk: Hawkeyes Basketball Team Previous Content Pierce's First Statement Parrish Says Pierce Is 'Extremely Disappointed' Pierce Dismissed From Hawkeyes Hawkeye Fans React Pierre Pierce's Playing Status Changed Alford Speaks About Pierce's Dismissal Parrish Talks About Dismissal Parrish Talks...